Day Two: Introduction

he second day of Grand Prix Oakland is underway. For many players with only a small handful of Darksteel drafts to their credit this was the first time they saw many of the cards. Many players griped about their picks because they were still reading cards for the first time when they were forced to make a selection.

In Paul Rietzl's case he took at least two cards on reputation alone. He highly picked a Darksteel Brute based on the card's hype. He also took a Test of Faith solely on Chad Ellis's recommendation from yesterday. He was quite pleased with the latter but dubious about the former.

Having one fewer pack of Myr, Talismans, and Spellbombs derailed many tried and true draft strategies. Despite only two packs of Mirrodin, Justin Schneider managed to draft six Cloudposts and such goodies as Malachite Golem and Darksteel Colossus. Whether his deck is amazing or awful seemed to depend on how you asked-Justin was in the latter camp.

All 64 players will have six rounds to get used to the cards and how they interact. The eight players that emerge on the top of that pile will undoubtedly have much stronger feelings about pick orders when they sit down for the final draft of the weekend-the draft that will determine the Grand Prix: Oakland champion.